What If
by Tigergirl
Summary: Rated high for safety. 5.19, "Hammer of the Gods." What if Gabriel had anticipated that his clone wouldn't fool Lucifer?


**Title:** What If

 **Authoress:** Tigergirl

 **Rated: M**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or gain any benefits from writing about Supernatural. I do not own any of its characters.**

 **Summary:** 5.19, "Hammer of the Gods." What if Gabriel had anticipated that his clone wouldn't fool Lucifer?

 **Author's Note: Sorry, readers. I couldn't think of a better title than that. Like it, hate it, make a suggestion for alternative title. This is just a story I came up with one day.**

Gabriel gasped as the blade plunged into him. Lucifer turned around before the fake copy could even disappear.

"I'm sorry it had to be this way, Gabriel."

Despite being on the end of an archangel blade, Gabriel smiled weakly at his brother.

"I'm sorry, too," Gabriel whispered.

Suddenly, Lucifer felt a sharp painful jab through his back. He didn't make a sound as the Gabriel clone on the end of _his_ archangel blade disappeared. His gaze flickered down to his abdomen where the sharp tip of a blade was sticking out through the center of his chest. He felt his body sag back against the shorter archangel.

" _Forgive me, brother._ "

Gabriel slowly removed his blade. With gentle hands, he lowered his brother's vessel to the ground as he watched the light fade from his eyes. His eyes watered as the smoky black image of Lucifer's wings stretched out across the ground. Tears started falling down his face when he felt the last bit of Grace leave the human's body. Only then did it sink in what had happened.

His brother was dead.

Thanks to his hidden markings in the walls, Gabriel was the only one who knew Lucifer no longer lived. This made his heart ache even more. Kneeling by his brother's side, Gabriel reached out to close his eyelids. His bottom lip quivered as he tried to say something, to apologize in some way.

Except he didn't know who he should apologize to. Lucifer? He wouldn't hear the apology so that would be a waste. Michael? He also wouldn't hear him, but that was because of the Enochian sigils written in the walls. The angels? _Fuck no_. Those dicks didn't deserve a hello, let alone an apology.

Squashing down the desire to apologize, Gabriel simply murmured a quiet prayer for his brother. He reached out with his Grace to remove one of the sigils before leaving with tears still running down his face.

/…/

Castiel turned his head towards the motel door when he heard the brothers outside. Dean seemed to be mildly irritated about something and was trying to unlock the door. When the door opened, the angel was able to overhear their conversation without eavesdropping on the brothers.

"I'm telling you, Sammy. It's the best song ever written," Dean said, entering the room with his gaze over his shoulder.

Sam shot his brother a bitch face.

"I can only listen to Metallica for so long, Dean. And it's _Sam,_ " Sam growled.

Dean chuckled. "Whatever you say… _Sammy._ "

" _ **Dean.**_ "

"Are they always like this?"

Sam and Dean's heads jerked sideways. They hadn't even realized Castiel wasn't alone. He had been alone when they had left so they hadn't thought he wouldn't be alone when they returned.

The young man stood up from the small table he had been sitting at with Castiel. The man seemed familiar, but neither Sam nor Dean could place him.

"Cas, who's this?" Sam asked.

Castiel turned his head to look at the strange male and tilted his head. The other male chuckled.

"I'm not surprised you do not recognize me, Sam Winchester. I've come to talk to you and your brother about your brother's role as my true vessel," the man, now revealed as Archangel Michael, smiled.

Dean reeled backwards, stumbling over his feet, when Sam grabbed his brother's arm and yanked. Sam pulled his brother along behind him and stood protectively in front of him.

"You can't have Dean. You and Lucifer both know we'll never say yes," Sam spat angrily.

To the brothers' surprise, it was Castiel who spoke up next. He turned his head away from Michael to regard them.

"Sam, Dean, Michael is not here to ask Dean for permission to use him as his true vessel," Castiel explained.

Dean squeezed his brother's wrist, getting him to release the death grip on his arm. He stepped carefully around Sam to stand beside him. His gaze was heavily focused on Michael, but it flickered once to Castiel.

"Well, I doubt you came down here to play strip poker and check out the body you're missing out on so what do you asshats want now?" Dean demanded.

Castiel gave him a sharp, disapproving look while Sam threw an elbow into his side. Surprisingly, Michael let out a small chuckle with a short shake of the head.

"I'm afraid it is simpler than you think. I've come to deliver a message to you pertaining to Lucifer and the Apocalypse," Michael answered.

Naturally, Dean's mouth fired off before his brother or Castiel could stop him.

"Oh yeah? And what does that douchebag want now because he sure as Hell ain't getting Sammy."

Michael's response was calm and collected.

"Lucifer won't be making any requests of anyone. He's dead. The Apocalypse will not happen."

The archangel's response seemed to echo through the room as the room's other three occupants stood shocked. None of them were quite sure what to say. Castiel had allowed Michael entrance to the motel room when he had first appeared, upon the understanding that Michael only had an important message to give. The death of the former Archangel had never even occurred to him.

Castiel was able to recover from his shock quicker than either of the Winchester boys.

"Is this information accurate?" Castiel asked.

Michael nodded slowly.

"Yes, Castiel. I've seen his dead vessel for myself. His wings… _his_ wings were scorched across the floor. Lucifer _is_ dead. Oddly enough, I was not the hand that dealt the final blow. It seems the Apocalypse was not meant to be. That is what brought me here to you now. I had hoped he was with you so that I may speak with him," Michael explained.

Castiel frowned in thought. Luckily, it only took a few seconds for him to decipher what – or rather, _who_ – Michael was talking about.

"Gabriel? Gabriel is responsible?"

Again, Michael nodded.

"He is."

Castiel was momentarily stunned. He couldn't believe that his brother, the Archangel turned Trickster, had done the unthinkable. His thoughts were interrupted by a loud, startling whoop from the elder Winchester.

"WOOHOO! We're free, Sammy! No _fucking_ Apocalypse for _**this**_ family!" Dean cheered, giving his brother a big tight squeeze.

Castiel was really thrown for a loop when Dean crossed the room with surprising speed and locked arms around him. For a man that was constantly telling him to watch his "personal space," this was most unusual behavior in Dean.

"Dean, I need to ascertain where Gabriel i-…"

Michael stared with his eyebrows shooting up slowly. His true vessel was kissing an angel. _Deeply_. He stared only long enough to be certain Dean wasn't forcing Castiel. Actually, it looked like the other way around if the hand holding the back of the hunter's head was anything to go by.

His gaze shifted from the couple to the other Winchester as he walked towards the door. Sam was smiling softly, almost with a sad tone to his face.

"You don't seem surprised," Michael noted.

Sam shrugged.

"I've kind of always known. Hey, I'm sorry to ask this, but can you do me a favor?" Sam asked.

Michael stared at him with a questioning look in his eyes. He was silent for a moment before suddenly speaking.

"I am sorry, Sam Winchester. My brother only raised my awareness to Lucifer's death before disappearing. I don't know where he is," Michael explained.

Sam took in a deep breath before releasing it.

"But I think I do," Sam replied.

/…/

The sky was overcast, but that could be counted to the late hour which had descended over the town. Sam stood outside the familiar diner with a shiver running up his spine. This was the very diner he suffered through so many Tuesday's before figuring out it was Gabriel, then only known as The Trickster. Letting out a deep, staggering breath, Sam snagged the door handle and pulled.

When he entered the diner, his gaze shifted around the nearly empty room, but it first connected with the familiar waitress – the one who dropped the hot sauce _and_ shot his brother. She had a nervous look upon her.

"You're here for _him_ , aren't you? He said someone would come," she said.

Sam nodded. "I am."

"Hmm. You don't much fix the nerdy accountant description. Maybe more the moose. Certainly not the squatting jackelope," she ponded out loud.

Sam suppressed a chuckle. He would be hard pressed not to share Gabriel's comparisons of him, his brother, and his brother's angel later with them. As the waitress stepped away, the small shape of the Archangel was spotted sitting at the end of the diner bar.

Sam approached with slow, steady steps. The small vessel was hunched over a plate of pancakes. The short stack was untouched with the dollop of butter melted all over the top and the unwrapped silverware still sitting next to the plate. Gabriel's gaze was down on the food, yet he knew Sam was there.

"Hello, Sam," Gabriel murmured.

Sam stopped short a few feet from him. He tried to wrack his brain for a time he had ever heard the trickster-archangel call him by his name.

Moose? Nope.

Sammich? No.

Samsquatch? Not that either.

Sammy? Nada.

Kiddo? A favorite, but no.

Honestly, he didn't know that he could say anything that would cheer the archangel up. Well, aside from the message Michael asked him to pass along.

"Michael…wanted you to know he…umm..he…"

The side of Gabriel's mouth skidded up into a tiny smile.

"I know, Sam. Michael would have sent Castiel or come himself if he was upset. You can go back to your brother now."

In good conscience, that was something Sam couldn't do. Sighing, Gabriel closed his eyes to block out the sight of the hunter leaving. He barely stopped himself from jumping when a great warmth draped over his back. Suspecting what the heat was, the archangel slipped an eye open to confirm.

Sure enough, seen in the reflection of the bar mirror, the large hunter had wrapped himself around the shorter male. One arm was wrapped firm across his chest. The other arm was at Sam's side with the fist grasping the back of the archangel's jacket like he thought Gabriel would leave in an instant. Bent at the waist, Sam pressed his face in between Gabriel's shoulder blades.

Sam knew Gabriel could fly away with a quick snap of his fingers. Or he could easily launch the hunter through the window and out onto the street. Sam didn't know what to say to the archangel. He was at a loss for words. He couldn't say he was sorry Gabriel's brother was dead, because he wasn't. He was thankful for what Gabriel had done. He was thankful _he_ wasn't dead.

He was even more thankful when he felt two arms come up to pull him in even tighter. Sam felt all of his emotions bubbling up. This whole colossal mess had been too much for too long.

The blood…

The angels…

Abomination…

Seals breaking…

The blood…

 _Abomination_ …

True vessel…

Michael…Lucifer… _Dean_ … _Sam_

 _ **Abomination…**_

The tears streaming down his face didn't even register in Sam's head. His body shook violently as he was overwhelmed with the anxiety. During this whole shit tornado, he had felt angry…defeated…at a loss for words. But not once had he released the anguish and now the floodgates were open.

He didn't feel the sudden shift in the air. However, he did feel the body trying to move away which made him grip tighter with a loud, watery sob. A soft voice shushed him, but he was beyond comprehension now. It was too much. _Too much_.

Sam crumbled to his knees when the body suddenly disappeared out of his arms. Sam's whole body shook, even as his throat started closing up. His chest started tightening as if someone were squeezing his heart. Suddenly, through his blurred vision, Sam saw a pair of hands come towards him. Fearing the worse, Sam turned his head away and flinched when one hand touched his face.

Despite the fear, tears, and increasing inability to breathe, Sam allowed the hands to grip him and haul him up to his feet. They helped him to stumble onto something soft before he was lowered down into a horizontal position. He didn't fight the hands as they lowered his head to a warm surface with a rhythmic beating. The hands smoothed over his face, through his hair, and across the back of his neck.

"… _kiddo. You…breathe…_ "

Slowly, the voice came into focus and throwing all of his attention on it helped the tightness in his chest. The tears continued to flow, but the chest and throat loosened up. His shirt dissolved away, finally allowing the continued flow of air through his body. As one hand squeezed the back of his neck, the other stroked gently through his hair.

Gradually, the tears slowed until all that was left were a few sniffles.

" _Shhhh. Come on, Sammy boy. Relax._ "

Only after feeling a warm blanket cover over his body did Sam allow the exhaustion to seep in and lost consciousness. Gabriel couldn't help the smile from escaping as the younger Winchester drifted off. When first approached by the hunter, Gabriel had believed he had no understanding of the pain the archangel was going through.

However, when the floodgates had opened, so had the mind and the memories had poured out. Gabriel had seen every moment from when little Sammy had been born to that moment he hugged the archangel. And Gabriel thought his life was a royal fuck-up. He may have starred in the movie, but Moose wrote the script, directed, and won the damn trophy of all time!

Gabriel pulled his wings closer around the hunter, as if shielding him from the world. Sam snuffled in his sleep and rubbed his stuffy nose against Gabriel's chest. The archangel made a face, but he wouldn't move the hunter for anything. The little moose deserved some peace in his life for once!

Truth be told, like Cassie to his stumpy Winchester, Gabriel was drawn to his own Winchester. Something in his soul spoke to him. Yes, he saw the demon blood, but it was only a mere beauty mark on the magnificent soul packaged together in a breathtaking body. A beauty mark he could safely and assuredly remove to completely release Sam from his heavy chains.

He spent the next hour watching over the sleeping male. Every few minutes or so, Sam would shift or mumble something incoherently. Gabriel would press a kiss to his temple, run his fingers through his hair, and murmur softly to him. Sam would instantly calm and settle back in. At some point, Sam had gripped some feathers in a gentle hold. It didn't bother Gabriel in the least. The male would need to have the mighty grip of Thor to give his wings any trouble.

Hearing the pre-whooshing sound that indicated another angel arriving, Gabriel fanned out his wings, completely shielding the slumbering hunter. He shifted Sam higher up to nearly drop his chin on top of Sam's head. His wings shook with a warning before he caught view of who had found him.

Castiel lowered his own wings back and down yet he still took a step forward.

"Brother, I mean no harm," Castiel said in that gravelly, annoying voice of his.

Gabriel rolled his eyes.

"Go _away_ , Castiel. I'm in no mood for entertaining siblings," Gabriel warned.

Castiel's gaze fell on the barely visible head of the familiar brunette.

"Is that…" Castiel started.

"Don't you have a certain short-stack of a hunter to wear out?" Gabriel interrupted.

Castiel tilted his head while continuing without a pause.

"Dean is sleeping soundly after performing…" Gabriel couldn't snap his fingers fast enough to silence his brother.

Castiel shot him a mildly confused look.

"I don't need to hear the blow-by-blow of what goes on in _your_ personal life, Cassie," Gabriel said, lowering his wings a little.

Castiel's gaze zeroed in on Sam's slumbering face. It shot to Gabriel with many questions evident in his eyes.

"Moose came to comfort me and it turned into a soap box moment. He's just asleep. I'll return him to Dean-o after he's well rested, fed, and ready to leave."

Castiel indicated he wanted his voice back. Gabriel briefly pondered the idea of sending him back to his Winchester like that, but decided instead to be generous.

"Brother?" Castiel murmured.

Sighing, Gabriel dropped a wing and held out the hand not buried in Sam's hair. Castiel stepped closer and accepted the hand. Gabriel poured power from his Grace through their connection, using it to show his brother he was on the mend. It was more of a reassurance for the younger angel. Before Gabriel had initially left Heaven, Castiel had been the closest to him among their siblings.

Gabriel gently tugged on their hands and Castiel knelt down on one knee beside him. Just to knock it home, Gabriel pressed a small kiss to his baby brother's forehead. A small smile crept along the younger angel's face as he laid his head gently on his brother's shoulder. From the moment he came into existence, he had always sought knowledge and comfort from his older brother. They held a strong bond, one that may even rival the Winchester's.

At the moment, he could feel Dean stirring along _their_ connection. Because they were still holding hands, Gabriel felt it, too.

"Go on, baby bro," Gabriel murmured.

Castiel gave his hand a squeeze before flying off back to the motel. When Castiel landed back in the motel, he found Dean resting peacefully with his back facing him. Castiel blinked away his clothes and slipped back under the covers. He wrapped his arms around his lover and rubbed his nose against the back of Dean's neck.

" _Cas?_ "

Castiel opened his eyes.

"Yes, Dean?"

" _I won the bet, didn't I?_ "

Castiel paused to think of his answer before speaking.

"Shut up, assbutt."

The End

 **A/N: Hope y'all enjoyed. Drop me a review if you did. If you didn't, you're welcome to share that, too. Got flames? I got a fireplace that could use a good fire.**


End file.
